Sports writing course scores with Hull students

Thursday

The six-week course at Jacobs Elementary School was led by technology teacher Kerrie Ryan, and students in grades 3, 4 and 5 learned the basics of blogging and sports reporting.

When New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady enters the NFL Hall of Fame at the end of his playing career, Jameson McKenna might be there to write about the event.

If the U.S. hosts the World Cup some day, Victoria Fuda might be there to blog about the event as a member of the press. Jameson and Victoria both participated in an after-school sports writing program at the Jacobs Elementary School in Hull.

The program was part of the school’s popular JASPER program. The six-week course was led by technology teacher Kerrie Ryan, and students in grades 3, 4 and 5 learned the basics of blogging and sports reporting.

“I think it would be cool to be a sports writer,” said Victoria, a fifth-grader who plays soccer and basketball, but counts soccer as her favorite. “I think it would be fun to go to different sports games and to see different teams play.”

The 12 students in the class learned how to blog and write about various sports events in Hull, including the Thanksgiving Day football game against Cohasset. They also wrote about the annual Turkey Trot race held at Jacobs School. While most of the students would like to cover a Super Bowl and meet Brady, interests ranged from major sports like the Red Sox and Celtics to gymnastics and track.

“The class was a mix of third-, fourth- and fifth-graders who all have an interest in writing,” said Ryan, who will likely offer the class again in the spring.

“The class was an introduction to blogs, and we focused on sports writing so we could interest both boys and girls to come to the class. There was a great deal of interest.”

Jameson plays three sports, but likes the Bruins the best because she comes from a family of hockey players. Like Victoria, she aspires to be a sports writer some day.

“I like writing about sports because that’s what I do,” she said. “I play a sport every season. I think it would be fun to go to lot of games and get to meet the players.”